Believe We Are Here When Christmas Comes to Town
by Tif S
Summary: AU Pan's Curse: It's the first Christmas since the curse broke, and the family is determined to give Henry a Christmas to remember. But what happens when something comes to light that his parents never saw coming? As in the Enchanted Forest, Baelfire and Emma experience their first Christmas as princess and prince, and their first royal dilemma.(An Early Christmas gift) SF&OQ
1. Chapter 1

_**Major AU Pan's Curse verse: It's the first Christmas since the curse broke, and the family is determined to give Henry a Christmas to remember. But what happens when something comes to light that his parents never saw coming? As in the Enchanted Forest, Baelfire and Emma experience their first Christmas as princess and prince, and their first royal dilemma. Swanfire and Outlaw Queen coparenting H/C, and young Swanfire holiday fluff. An early Christmas gift for GleeJunkie007**_

_**A/N: Hey all, here with another shorter holiday story written as a surprise early Christmas gift for one of my fanfiction friends GleeJunkie007. This one requires a bit of background. It is based on an RP that I am part of with an abused Henry element and fast forwards a bit from where we are AUing the AU that we created with a what if post our current point in the storyline. I came up with the idea when I was listening to Christmas music, and this premise is based on three particular Christmas songs that I adore. Ring in the Season by the cast of Frozen from Olaf's Frozen adventure particularly the line "It's the first Christmas in forever since we opened up the gates, and it's the first Christmas I remember to date and it's already worth the wait.", When Christmas Comes to Town from the Polar Express, and Believe by Josh Groban also from the Polar Express. A bit about the RP that can help in understanding this story. The curse was cast by Pan when Henry was three years old, he is the savior, and unlike Emma, he was unable to escape. As a result, Henry and our OC Sierra Mills, daughter of Zelena, were raised by Pan as brother and sister, and both were abused but Henry got the worst of it. Emma was also in an abusive relationship with Walsh. As a result this story does have trigger warnings for discussion of past abuse. **_

* * *

**Chapter One**

It had been a month. Snow had fallen on the ground in Storybrooke and Regina's was decorated for the holiday season. They had come to terms with not being able to return home, and Pan had long been defeated, but the aftermath still stuck with them. The imp had done his damage.

Roland was sitting with Henry and Sierra at one of the tables, and Regina noticed that Roland was once again talking their ears off: telling Henry about the enchanted forest no doubt.

Baelfire was in the back, in the kitchen helping to prepare a few of the menu items. He had kept his job as had Emma, figuring if they couldn't go back they may as well make the best of it. It was a crapshoot whatever way they swung it, but keeping the town running well, that didn't stop even with everything else. His in-laws taught him that. And without Pan's vise grip, and with Snow and Charming taking the reins, well things ran a lot smoother.

It hadn't escaped Baelfire's notice that Henry's gaze had kept going to the door, and the hot chocolate in front of him had gone untouched, despite Regina's added touches. It was a lot for all of them to process, but no one more than Henry. His boy had had his heart broken several times over, and even with Regina's advice, Bae still had no idea how quite to approach his son about all of this. He had been doing his best to help Emma. They had been to see Archie and were working through it slowly. But with Christmas three weeks away, Bae couldn't help the emotions that were coming up. Their son's childhood had been utterly destroyed. His wife had been hurt badly and it broke him more than the damage he himself had been dealt by his grandfather's hand.

"Baelfire," Regina had entered the kitchen. "You're still working?"

He nodded.

Regina frowned. "Well, stop." She said. "I've got this."

"You're sure?"

"Your Highness, if you don't go talk to your son so help me…" Regina teased.

"Alright, I get it." Baelfire replied. He moved aside and went out to the front.

* * *

"Christmas was always the best," Roland was saying. "There were parties and Dad would help us find our very own tree. And he helped Baelfire find a tree for the palace too."

Sierra noticed Henry's expression was unreadable, not unusual, but now it was even moreso. "Roland…" She hissed. "Knock it off." It hadn't been easy these last few weeks. Finding out everything he'd known had been fake, well not fake not really. Pan's damage had been real for both of them. But Sierra had memories with her mom, holidays in the Enchanted Forest, getting nursed when she wasn't feeling well. Henry… Pan had been the only parent he'd known. And then Regina and Robin. He hadn't known Emma and Baelfire as his mom and dad. And yet, hearing that they were...and they hadn't even known well that was crazy.

"What?" Roland looked over and then noticed Henry's face again. "Oh...I'm doing it again, I'm sorry."

"It's okay…" Henry smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "It sounds like it was fun."

Roland nodded. "It was. David let you put the star on the tree,". Roland flipped through the book and found the picture. "See?"

_This will never not be freaking weird. _Henry thought as he studied the illustration of little him in David's arms in front of a giant Christmas tree. "That's great," Henry said. He was trying to enjoy hearing the stories Roland was telling and his part in them, but it was all too strange. It was easier when it had been the four of them on the couch reading the stories as just that, stories. Sure he'd managed to break the curse, but this was still odd. Especially since he was older than them and they remembered all of it.

"Hey guys," Henry looked over to see Neal...no Baelfire...no Dad...ugh whoever he was, come over to their table.

"Hey Neal," Henry nodded in acknowledgement.

"What are you guys doing?" Baelfire looked to the three kids.

"I was telling Henry about Christmas back home." Roland said.

"Oh?" Baelfire said taking notice of the book and the illustration. "You know, that day almost didn't happen,"

Roland looked to the prince, confused. "It didn't?"

Baelfire shook his head. "Almost. And it was because I wanted to make a good impression."

Henry took a drink of his hot chocolate, trying to hide his wince as he swallowed. That had hurt. "A good impression?" He cleared his throat.

Baelfire looked to Henry. "You alright there bud?"

Henry nodded.

"You know things didn't start well with us?" Baelfire confirmed.

"David and Snow didn't want you with Emma," Sierra nodded. That had been the first story they'd read together the four of them: her, Henry, Roland and Regina.

"Well, even after things were forgiven, it was...still hard to fit in." Baelfire said. "Especially since our Christmas traditions were so different."

"How different?" Roland asked. "Like me Mama and Dad's?"

"Well, that depends…" Baelfire smiled. "How big were your Christmas parties?"

* * *

_**A/N: So that's the introduction. It seems Henry is uncomfortable for more than one reason, and Baelfire is going to share a bit of his past. **_

_**Fun fact: This was originally going to be two different stories but I decided to combine them into one. This is also the first story in a self—imposed Christmas challenge where I am going to attempt to write OUAT short stories or oneshots based on different Christmas or Holiday songs, Two others of which I am already planning so if you have any suggestions please feel free to send them my way. I hope you enjoy. Next chapter should be up at some point tomorrow or Tuesday if my anticipated writing time is able to happen.**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**So here's chapter two. Hope you enjoy. Just a clarification in case I forgot to mention it in the chapter one author's note. Henry and Sierra were raised by Pan during the curse, so the flashback in this chapter, Dad is referencing Pan, not Baelfire.**_

* * *

**Chapter Two**

"_So first, Mom and Dad are going to go down, then us." Emma explained. "Like this," Baelfire allowed Emma to take his arm as they walked down the first few steps. He had been with Emma for a while, but this was the first big royal event he had been invited to be a part of, and it was the Christmas ball. "And then the dance." _

_Baelfire frowned. "Are you sure that's the best idea?"_

"_What, the dance?" Emma looked to Baelfire. "You're not still nervous are you?"_

"_No, it's just…" He glanced away as he felt Emma's gaze on him._

"_Bae, lying thing remember?" She smirked as she pulled him down to the landing, and then pulled him close, putting her arms around his neck. "We've been practicing for months. She glanced down to where Baelfire already had his hands on her waist. "If you were dreadful, you wouldn't even have this position." She had shared dances with enough below par partners and knew many that barely knew how to begin a proper dance. She then stepped back and curtsied_

"_Thanks for the vote of confidence." Baelfire replied bowing. "But we've never done it in front of people." _

"_Stop it," Emma said. "You'll be fine." She returned with him to the first position. "You'll see," _

_Baelfire began the dance with Emma as she hummed the song, and found his concerns disappearing at least for the moment as they spent this time in each other's company._

* * *

"So you'd never danced before?" Sierra asked.

The bell above the door to Regina's rang as someone else entered the restaurant. "Who are we talking about?"

Henry turned to see Emma, some bags in her hand.

"Baelfire was telling us about the Christmas ball and that he never danced before," Roland said.

"Thanks," Baelfire mock frowned in Roland's direction.

Emma nodded. "Oh, that was an interesting day."

"It was," Baelfire chuckled.

Henry flipped through the book trying to find the story Neal was telling.

"Henry," Emma noticed Henry's face looked a bit flushed.

Henry looked up quickly. "Huh? Oh, sorry. Hi," He greeted Emma.

"Hi," Emma said. "How you been Kid?"

"Okay…" Henry replied, not looking up as he had found the page. He studied it, noticing three other figures in the background.

"Look, it's Rumplestiltskin, Snow and David!" Roland pointed, having noticed that Henry had taken the book and was looking at a story. He studied it closer. "Was that the day?" He turned to Emma and Baelfire.

"Oh god, we _did _have an audience." Baelfire said looking at the illustration. He then looked to the bags Emma had placed down. "What do you have there?"

"Well, Mom picked up a few things since it's almost Christmas," Emma pulled out the contents of the bags, some light necklaces, reindeer antlers, a Rudolph nose elf hats and Santa hats.

Roland eagerly grabbed for the Rudolph nose and antlers and a necklace of Christmas lights. Sierra more cautiously grabbed a pink elf hat. Henry, both adults noticed, looked at the items strewn across the table, not making a move.

Sierra looked at Henry, grabbing his hand under the table and squeezing reassuringly, knowing the look.

_Henry was five years old. It was almost Christmas and the teacher had taught them how to make Rudolph costumes out of construction paper. Henry came out of school wearing his taped on red nose and the stapled brown paper crown with antlers sticking up. His dad was outside the pickup line, and had grabbed him without a word taking him to the car. It had hurt Henry's arm badly, and tears stung his eyes. Didn't his daddy like his Rudolph costume? Once they drove home, zig zagging a lot, Daddy had pulled him hard again, up the stairs, inside straight to his bedroom slamming the door so loud the floor shook. _

"_What the goddamn hell are you wearing?!" _

"_I'm Rudolph the red nosed reindeer Dad…" Henry said. "Rudolph the red nosed reindeer had a very shiny nose…" Henry began to sing the song to demonstrate_

"_Rudy The Who?" His father then pulled the nose hard so it came off his face and slammed back into it, the paper hitting him under the eye as it shot back._

"_OW!" Henry screamed as he felt the stinging like a paper cut on his finger, but on his face. _

"_Get this goddamn joke off right now and into the trash!" His father demanded._

"_But Dad...I like it, it's fun." Henry cried. "It's mine, I made it!"_

"_NOW!" _

"_No!" Henry shouted back._

_THWACK!_

"_Now it's more than your nose that's red you stupid boy." His dad then ripped the nose as the string snapped dropping it to the ground at his son's feet. He pulled the antlers off none too gently ripping and crumpling them in his hand leaving the pieces in the same spot before he left the room. _

_Henry held his cheek curled onto the floor as he cried._

* * *

_**A/N: And so Baelfire is nervous about the dance he and Emma have to do at the Christmas ball, and Emma has noticed Henry is off as well.**_

_**Next chapter, we get some parental moments and some pushback as in the Enchanted Forest, Emma decides to share a less nerve wracking Christmas tradition with Baelfire.**_


End file.
